by Alexis Simendinger & Kristina Karisch | The Hill
Former President Trump exulted in a favorable ruling from a unanimous Supreme Court on Monday and projections of triumph in today’s Super Tuesday contests in 15 states amid evident Republican Party divisions.
All nine justices agreed that Colorado, which holds its primary today, can’t knock Trump off ballots based on a clause in the Constitution’s 14th Amendment. The upshot was not a surprise. The high court had expressed worries about a patchwork of states determining which national candidates could appear on ballots. The justices united behind a historic conclusion that Congress, not states, commands such election-related turf, although their reasoning varied.
“Former President Trump challenges that decision on several grounds. Because the Constitution makes Congress, rather than the States, responsible for enforcing Section 3 against federal officeholders and candidates, we reverse,” the unsigned opinion said.
Trump celebrated online and during a Fox News interview, calling the result a “great win for America.” But he immediately turned his attention to a pending Supreme Court verdict considered less predictable and more personally consequential for a candidate who has pleaded not guilty to 91 criminal charges, some stemming from his time in the Oval Office.
Does a president have absolute immunity from criminal prosecution, as Trump claims, for decisions made and actions taken while in office? The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in that federal elections case on April 22.
The Justice Department is prepared to prosecute Trump at trial before Election Day in two jurisdictions. But Trump’s legal challenges and the Supreme Court’s deliberate pace may mean government prosecutors do not get near federal courtrooms this year.
“I hope that the justices, because they’ll be working on some other cases, but one in particular, presidents have to be given total immunity,” Trump said in remarks from his Mar-a-Lago club. “They have to be allowed to do their job. If they’re not allowed to do their job, it’s not what the founders wanted, but perhaps even more importantly it will be terrible for the country.”
- Axios: Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said he is developing legislation to respond to the high court’s Colorado opinion. He concedes the House GOP majority would likely block it.
- The Washington Post: Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows on Monday dropped her effort to bar Trump from her state’s ballot following the high court ruling.
- The Washington Post analysis: The Supreme Court in its Monday opinion did not provide clarity about whether Trump’s Jan. 6, 2021, actions were insurrection.
GOP presidential challenger Nikki Haley, who last week said she hoped Trump’s legal cases would be “dealt with” before November, applauded the high court’s verdict Monday in the Colorado ballot case. She has suggested she’ll gauge whether to remain in the race based on voters’ decisions in today’s primaries and caucuses, when more delegates are at stake than on any other single date during the primary season.
Trump is ahead in that count, but Haley may stretch out the season into mid-March before the former president can lock in an indisputable delegate lead and lock out any remaining suspense about the GOP nominee. Tonight’s returns in portions of states where traditional Republican voters don’t favor Trump may train a spotlight on vulnerabilities for the front-runner in key battleground states later this year.
President Biden, who gives his State of the Union address Thursday night, will, like Haley, pore over tonight’s returns. For more on Super Tuesday and the president’s big speech, read below.
3 Things to Know
- The Supreme Court late Monday temporarily blocked a new immigration enforcement law in Texas until justices can decide what steps to take. The administration contested a Texas law that says police can arrest migrants who illegally enter the U.S. across the southern border with Mexico.
- Former Trump Organization finance chief Allen Weisselberg pleaded guilty Monday to felony perjury charges and will return to prison after a sentencing hearing April 22. He did not implicate Trump.
- Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) invited the parents of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, 32, who has been imprisoned in Russia for nearly a year, to attend Thursday’s State of the Union address as his guests. “The United States must always stand for freedom of the press around the world, especially in places like Russia, where it is under assault,” Johnson said in a statement. “The administration must bring Evan home.”